Shade roller



T. menu.- SHADE ROLLER, APPLICATION FILED FEB. 21, 192].

Patented Feb. 28, 1922.

INVENTOR. [ha/7262's flay/ e a M -w MM ATTORNEYS.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

'rHoMAs DIGNEY,. or :amnenron'r, CONNECTICUT.

SHADE ROLLER,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 28, 1922.

Application filed February-21,.1921. Serial No. 446,895.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known thatTHoMAs DIGNEY, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, has invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shade Rollers, of whichthefollowing-is a specification.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in adjustable window shade rollers and is particularlyadapted for use on 'windows of closed carssuch aslimousines, sedans, etc.

The object of therinvention is to generally improve upon-shade rollers of this class and especially to doaway with the'pivotal forms of pawl mechanism as employed upon the old style of rollers for holding the same in their adjusted position; to 1 lessen the liability of thepawls sticking and thusfailing to operate, and especiallytoavoid rattle which is so liable to come "from a pivotal pawl style of .roller when used on automobile bodies. Further to provide a'moresubstan tial and practical form-of automatich'olding mechanism.

A further feature ofthe invention .is to provide a series of-radially disposed guide slots in the inner face-of one of the end members of therroller to-accommodate a series of specially formed 'slidable pawls which enrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended, it being understood that various changes in the form, proportion, size and minor details of construction within the scope of the claims may be resorted to without departure from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Similar characters of reference denote like or corresponding parts throughout'the several figures of the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, and upon which,

Fig. 1 shows a side view of an improved form of shade roller constructed in accordance with the objects of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a central vertical longitudinal section of thesame.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical longitudinal section through that end portion of the roller including the automatic locking 'mechanism.

Fig. at is a vertical cross section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 shows an enlarged detached front elevation and central vertical section of the closure cap employedfor covering the pawls, and

Fig. 6 shows upon an enlarged scale, a side and edge v1ew respectively of one of the :pawls'as shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

Referring in detail to the characters of reference marked upon thedrawings, 10 and 11 represent brackets which inpractice are attached to tlie'window casing and serve to support the end portions of the roller mounted in socketsof the bracket and to hold the same against turning by reason of the threaded end 12 of shaft 13 engaging the threaded socket inits bracket'and holding it against rotation. 14 and 15 represent'end members of'the roller, each being preferably provided with an annular groove 16 in which'the respective ends of the sheet metal barrel.17 of'the rollerare inserted and'soldered or otherwise secured for retainingt he' parts together.

A torsional spring 18 is mounted uponthe shafta'nd has one of its ends secured ;at 19 to: the;.end;member--14 of the roller and the other end secured at 20 to the roller shaft so as to normally retain the roller in a specially relate-d position to the shaft, but in a way to permit one to be turned with regard to the other against the torsional action of the spring. This much of the mechanism thus,

described issubstantially like that employed in some of the commercial types of shade rollers and does not necessarily form any material feature of my invention.

The specific features of the invention are more particularly shown in Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6 and in this respect it will be obvious that the above mentioned roller shaft 13 is provided with a notch 21 in the side of one end portion for engagement by means, carried within the roller so as to hold the latter, after the shade has been adjusted, in relation to the fixed position of the shaft. The end member 15 of the roller shown in Figs. 3 and 4, is provided upon its inner side lines in Fig. 4E and so as to form a stop to:

with an annular shoulder 22 in the peripheral face of which is provided an annular groove 23 while the innerside face of the end member includes a series of radial slots or guideways 24:. A sheet metal cap 25 fits over the shoulder and has its edge portion 27 pressed into the annular groove 23 so as to hold the cap in position uponthe shoulder and thereby slidably retain the several pawls 26 in said guideways in operative position. These pawls, of which there may be any desired number, fourbeing shownin the drawings, are preferably stamped out of sheet metal, to loosely fit theguide ways referred to and are provided with a tooth upon their inner end suitable to engage the shoultioned at the top, at the moment when theroller is brought to astop;

"Several small eXtens1onsfl28 are projected in from the edge of the eap to align with the shoulders 29 of the pawls 'as'shown by full lines in Fig. 3 and as indioated by-dotted limit the forward movement of the pawls and thus prevent them from covering the hole in the end member and interfering with the insertion of the shaft when assembling" the rollers. As shown upon'o'ne side of the "pawls, I provide a seriesof small projections 40" 30 to form a reduced bearing surface fort'he pawl against theunder face of-the cap, to

fprevent the pawls from sticking, These raised bearings points may be produced'by punch operations in the oppositels 'ide of the j' pawls.

' ways surrounding the notched end tion of the shaft, a series 'of pawls slidably I mounted in said guide ways to engage the shaft, and a cap fittedupon the hub of the I claim:

1, In a shade roller, the combination with a spring actuated barrel and a longitudinal shaft contained therein having a shouldered notch adjacent one end, of an end member for closing the barrel and having a hole to rotatably receive the shaft, including a hub portion extending into the barrel and having a series of guide-ways adapted to register successively with said notch in the rotation of said barrel, a series of' pawls slidably mounted in said guideways, and a cap fitted upon the hub of the end member for enclosing the pawls, said end member provided with an annularshoulder inthe peripheral cap having its edge portion pressed into said annular groove.

'2. In a shade roller, the combination with aspring actuated barrel and a longitudinal shaft contained therein having a shouldered notch, of an end member for closing the bar- 'i'el and having a hole to rotatably receive the shaft, including a hub portion extending into the barrel and having a series of guide porend member for enclosing the 'pawls, said end member provided with an annular shoulder in the peripheral faceof which-is an annular groove, and said cap' having its edge portion pressed into said annular groove, and the body of said cap having extensions'projecting therefrom and into the path of operation ofthe pawls to limit the movement of the same.

Signed at Bridgeport 1n the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut this 19th day of February, A. D; 1921. I i

' j 'THOMA'S DIGNEY.

Witnessesz I CLM. NnwMAN, LILLIAN M. A LINQ;

faceof which is an annular groove, and said 

